Sunday, July 31, 2011

I am suffering from withdrawal...I have not made a card for 2 months...hopefully all the stored up creativity can be put to good use now! I have been wanting to make a card for the CAS-ual Fridays challenge since it started...they are now on challenge 13 - oh boy...

This week's challenge is to make a 4" x 9" card...my first time making one of this size!

I cut out the sentiment "Je T'aime" with my Silhouette and distressed the edges with Ranger Distress Ink (vintage photo). I adhered the sentiment to a panel of kraft cardstock (SU), also distressed with the same ink. I cut a piece of lacy ribbon I had in my stash, coloured it a bit with some brown & green copics to dirty it up, tied the end with some linen thread (SU) and adhered it under the sentiment. The kraft panel is mounted to some yummy bermuda Damask Shimmer Couture cardstock from A muse studio.

Monday, June 13, 2011

I stamped the needle on a scrap of ivory paper and poked a hole in the eye as well as a hole just above the eye to thread the twine through. I stamped the sentiment then I used teeny dabs of glue to strategically adhere the twine. The right edge is finished with pinking shears. I don't really card for sewing in real life, but threading this needle was fun!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

I have been storing up creative energy for months...you can see my last post was in May, and that was for cards made back in the winter time!! When Paper Crafts posted the Gallery Idol competition, with a grand prize being a Paper Crafts cruise in November, that was pretty good incentive to get busy! The theme for the first round is Congratulations. I have two entries to share with you today...there is still time (deadline is July 4th), so I may make a few more yet...

I haven't mentioned it here, but I recently decided to sell my Cricut and I bought a Silhouette SD to replace it. What I love about the Silhouette is that I can download designs instantly whenever the mood strikes me (most are 99 cent downloads!) and I can cut out any true-type fonts that I have on my computer - no cartridges! It was Carly that got me started thinking about getting one back when we were on the Splitcoaststampers CAS DT together and she made this card.

I used my Silhouette for both of these - I had the idea for two thumbs up in my head, and wouldn't you know, they had the shape in the Silhouette store...I also cut out the prize ribbon and the w's on it. I am very happy about both of these designs...there are over 200 cards already submitted and that number is sure to increase before the deadline - competition is fierce...wish me luck ;-)

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Did you get your copy yet? I got mine in the mail from Paper Crafts the other day - I am excited that they chose 2 of my projects for this special issue. It is full of amazing and inspiring cards for many occasions - I highly recommend you go out and buy it - you won't be disappointed!

Here is one of my cards that you'll find in this issue - the other one is on page 34.

Hope you have a super day! I am off to the nursery with my mom to buy her flowers for her pots for Mother's Day...

Because of the softness of the photo, I chose vellum as my card base. I used a piece of tissue paper I had saved and die cut multiple layers of flowers, crumpling them up and attaching them together with a brad. I ran a ribbon through a few holes on the bottom of a scrap of ivory paper and tucked some green tissue paper underneath for the ties. Edging and rounded corners as well as a flourishy sentiment complete the look.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

I found some really cool trim at a local fabric warehouse a few weeks ago and it is perfect for this challenge. The trim itself is off-white, but easily coloured with copics using some of the colour combos found in the flowers. I stamped the sentiment on a card base with rounded corners, then I grounded a strip of the flower trim with an ivory scalloped base and adhered it to the card base. I love how quick and easy this was to make!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Hot air balloons are beautiful...they are everywhere in the crafting world these days, and now that spring is here, I expect we will see some in the horizon from our back deck. I am afraid of heights, and would likely never go up in one, but I love to watch them from the ground!! I am also loving all the great creations that are being made for the latest Moxie Fab World Challenge "In my Beautiful Balloon". Here is my entry:

Here is how the card came together...I hand-drew my balloon and cut it out of kraft cardstock. I then cut out the stripes in different colours. Once they were adhered to the balloon base, I stitched the seams for dimension. All of the edges are sponged with distress ink which gives additional dimension. I had to do all of that twice because my sewing machine ate my first balloon and completely wrecked it. ACK!!! The basket is made from half of the decorative label punch topped with a large scalloped border. The sentiment fit perfectly on the basket - YAY! The balloon is accented by kraft clouds and baker's twine ropes.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

I have not bought much lately (stamping supplies or stamps). There has been a lot of talk on Splitcoaststampers about using what you have - a great concept really, considering I could open a small store with my supplies!!

Here is a card made with some of my "older" stash:

Image was stamped in distress ink, spritzed with water, stamped onto watercolour paper and matted with black. I stamped the sentiment then adhered the main image to the card base with pop dots. The birds were "coloured" with liquid pearls.

I rounded the corners on my card base and the main image for a softer look. I punched the left edge of the main image then stamped the wild rose image and the sentiment. I added some accents to the rose with glitter pens (red and hot pink). I used tea dye inks to add some distressing and definition to all of the edges on the card and main image. I adhered the main image with dimensionals. Bling was added next as per Julie's card. The scalloped edge at the bottom was an afterthought...the card was missing something and this edge helps to ground the main image as well as adds that magical third red element.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

The image is this week's Tuesday Trigger in the Moxie Fab World. I don't know if I want to see this image again!! The card has taken me since Friday night to complete! I got the card base, the ribbon and the border all sorted out right away, but the focal image...let's just say, there are a FEW bits and pieces in the garbage and a whole bunch more scraps in my collection!! Eventually, here is what emerged (with more layers than my usual):

What I realized after all the hours spent on this card is that I am more comfortable with lots of white space...too much brightness was hard to figure out.

BUT, I made a layered card with hardly any white on it, AND I like how it turned out.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Using pink and purple? Yet another new thing for me!! I had to scrounge pretty hard to find some purple in my stash!

I seem to be using up random bits and pieces lately...the black shimmery label was in my pile of scraps. I embossed the purple paper with dots and sanded it to reveal the white core. I coloured the flower with copics, added some glitter in the middle and then a good amount of black peals (why hoard them??). I stamped a tiny sentiment repeatedly along a strip of white and then added the punched border - the straight edge was too harsh and did not go with the flowery-purply look... More complicated than my usual style, but hey...new things, right?!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

I love big cities...the hustle and bustle...taking the subway...walking around at night and not being the only ones on the street...the shopping (can't forget that!)...Plans are in the works for a second annual get-away-from-it-all trip to New York City! I could totally live there if I had a few million to buy a place ;-)

Not much stamping on this one...only the sentiment. I used a bunch of scraps - the herringbone background, the swiss-dotted clouds and the strip of green. I used my cricut to cut out a blue cityscape silhouette. I got some Tim Holtz sentiments in a trade this past year and cut one up a bit to fit on the card. Love using bits and pieces that are laying around. You have no idea how many times I have pulled out those clouds and tried them on a card...finally, they are glued down on one!!

I saw my first robin while hiking in the forest behind my house yesterday! Spring has arrived...can't wait for the sun to shine and dry up all the mud! I am so excited to make a warm weather card for this challenge. I submitted to the last Paper Crafts call (no luck this time) and was making Halloween cards!!

The hummingbird and flower are all stamped in one layer...used a bit of rock and roll on the bird & flower for depth. All the edges are distessed with tea dye ink. I decided to embellish with bella baubles (say that 10 times fast!) because everything on the card was so flat - they add some needed dimension.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Where has the time gone...middle of March already! I certainly haven't been finding time to make cards lately - that has got to change! There is too much inspiration out there not to make something! This post's inspiration comes right from the motherlode of inspiration - Moxie Fab World's Tuesday Trigger - it's "Oh So Lovely" this week!

I love two things about this photo - the colours and the distressed look of the paint on the chair. You can see both of those elements in my card...

All of the edges are distressed with tea dye ink and then roughened up. I stamped the birdhouse and branch directly on the patterned paper and "hung" the birdhouse by a line of piercing. The twine bow helps anchor the end of the branch at the edge of the paper. The white in the twine was a bit stark so I coloured it with a copic to age it...love doing that! To adhere to the rule of threes, I added the black label for the sentiment. Adding the label helps the eye travel around the card - to the branch, down to the birdhouse and back to the label.

Monday, February 28, 2011

I finally have my computer back...it died on me at the worst time ever...glad to have it all fixed!

I wanted to share my first project ever to be published!! It's on page 45 of Paper Crafts Stamp It! Techniques (in the paper piecing section). There are so many amazing cards in this special issue - if you don't have it already, you need it!!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

I have not made a card for a challenge in ages! The current challenge at Moxie Fab World is "The Appearance of Cameos"..truly a challenge for me as I have no cameo stamps. After checking out Google Images for inspiration, I was happy to see that cameos are not just faces of women...they could be flowers or butterflies or scenes. Here is what I came up with:

The butterfly and oval frame are heat embossed for a bit of dimension - I used detail embossing powder for the oval frame and regular embossing powder for the butterfly. The black elements help the eye travel around the card. I kind of like the pink label backed with the red panel - doesn't clash at all!! Hope you like it...make sure you check out the challenge and play along!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

I am sending this into my "grade one-er"'s (as he calls himself) teacher because she is clearly amazing...

We had his 7th birthday party this past weekend at our house- 2 parents to 12 boys (ages 5-8) - it was an intense 2 hours. Their energy was unbelievable - it's a wonder the only "injury" was one bloody nose! And this was not even all the boys in his class - imagine a class full!! I am still in a state of shock from the party - I don't think I'll ever forget it!!

Saturday, January 15, 2011

I have a "reject" from a magazine call that I thought I'd share tonight...

This card was a lot of fun to make...colouring with my copics, masking the cactus and lots of glitter! It's hard to see, but the sombrero is pretty glittered up and there is a red-glitter-dotted-border on the black mat. This card is in honour of the busy month of January with 2 birthdays in the family and a trip to Florida coming up quickly :-)

About Me

I am a wife and mother to two busy boys. I work full-time as a physiotherapist, so my creative time is often around midnight! Papercrafting is my creative outlet and my only chance to get pink and frills out of my system! I like to hang out on Splitcoastampers as al_silver2.